In honor of the Bas Mitzva of Chana Leiba Ehrman
"ויהיו חיי שרה מאה שנה ועשרים שנה ושבע שנים"
Rashi says that at 100 she was like a 20 year old who is not liable to Divine punishment and at 20 she was as beautiful as a seven year old. What is the great praise of a 20 year old being as beautiful as a 7 year old? Also, what is the thematic connection between the two "age descents" - 100 to 20 in the realm of punishment and 20 to 7 in the realm of beauty.
In addition we would like to understand the Chazal that the eulogy of Avraham was אשת חיל. What is that all about?
The Medrash says that in the story of Avraham's dealings with the בני חת it says "בני חת" ten times to teach that if one is מברר מקחו של צדיק כאילו קיים עשרת הדברות - If one "clarifies" the acquisitions or transactions of a Tzadik it is as if he fulfilled the ten commandments! What does THAT mean??
We also want to understand the entire story of the search for a wife for Yitzchak and the seeming repetition of the story when the Torah is normally so concise, about which Chazal say that the speech of the Avadim of the Avos is more beautiful than the Torah of the children. One little allusion in the Torah teaches us many Halachos while here the Torah goes on and on with a story about Eved Avraham.
To begin we need to explain that there are 10 מאמרות [utterances] with which the world was created and those were followed by the 10 דברות [also a form of speech]. The 10 מאמרות are a בחינה [aspect, reflection] of תורה שבכתב while the 10 דברות are a בחינה of תורה שבעל פה. When it comes to תורה שבכתב it must be done EXACTLY as given. No adding, no subtracting. When it comes to תורה שבעל פה not only does one not write everything as was but one may not write ANYTHING, as it is a reflection of the אין סוף - infinity. Hashem's covenant with us is on תורה שבעל פה alone as it says " כִּ֞י עַל־פִּ֣י ׀ הַדְּבָרִ֣ים הָאֵ֗לֶּה כָּרַ֧תִּי אִתְּךָ֛ בְּרִ֖ית וְאֶת־יִשְׂרָאֵֽל" - the Bris is for the [infinite] על פה [Gittin 60b]. You can't write infinity....
There are 2 aspects to the existence of the world. One aspect is to ensure the existence of the world and certainly not to destroy it. This is through תורה שבכתב. Then there is a higher order which is העלאת עולמים - elevation of the worlds. This comes from תורה שבעל פה and through the Jewish people whose conduct determines the fate of the worlds. When a king leads a country but doesn't make the rules and only enforces them then he is not truly a leader but just an enforcer, a referee. The Jewish people however actually guide and determine the fate of the worlds. They were given the power of תורה שבעל פה so they make the rules and what they say down on earth is what is decided in heaven [Bava Metzia 86a]! [In Kabbala מלכות is תורה שבעל פה]. They both give the worlds their continued existence and also elevate them.
Sarah included both elements in her personality, the aspect of תורה שבכתב and תורה שבעל פה. That is the deeper meaning of בת ק' כבת כ' לעונשין - At 100 she was like 20 with regard to punishment. She not only didn't destroy but gives the world existence. כבת כ' לעונשין. A 20 year old receives no Divine punishment, no harm and destruction. So too Sarah at 100 not only caused no harm but gave the world חיות and vitality.
The second element was בת כ' כבת ז' ליופי - at 20 like 7 in her beauty. That expresses the fact that she elevated and beautified the worlds [not just not destroying, not just giving existence, but actually improving and enhancing them]. These two aspects were reflected in Sarah and that is alluded to in the pasuk when it says "שני חיי שרה" - The TWO aspects of the life of Sarah.
We see these elements regarding Adam HaRishon who was supposed live forever and his sin ruined everything and Hashem told him "כי עפר אתה ואל עפר תשוב". He could have given the worlds existence and even elevated them but instead destroyed them. The explanation is that the life of man has two aspects. The first is the life of man in this world that is limited. That reflects תורה שבכתב. The second aspect is the life of man after תחיית המתים which will be unlimited, a type of אין סוף, which as we said is a בחינה of תורה שבעל פה. Therefore the primary revelation of תורה שבעל פה will be in the future and that will be through the Light of Moshiach. The Medrash says that our Torah is הבל compared to the Torah of Moshiach. This doesn't mean that there will be another Torah given by Hashem ח"ו but that He will reveal new depth in the Torah, the Infinite aspect of the Torah. Had Adam not sinned then he would have lived a set amount of years in order to reveal תורה שבכתב. When he would finish this limited existence he would not die but rather be elevated to a higher level where he would reveal the תורה שבעל פה, a type of אין סוף. Only through the sin of the עץ הדעת this had to be revealed in a different order and that is by going back to the dust where he came from. That is a type of planting when people lie in the dust for a a certain amount of time based on a set calculation known to Hashem regarding each individual. During this time he is purified and elevated to a higher level of revealing תורה שבעל פה which will be the time of the revelation of the light of Moshiach. The only way this Tikkun can be accomplished is by returning to the dust from where he was created.
It says in the Zohar Hakadosh that under the dust of Mizbeach there is a long pipe until Me'oras Hamachpeila [עי' ח"א קכ"ה ב] and there will take place the primary revelation of the Tikkun that will be in the future. However some element of this is already revealed now in the Jewish people [but not great as the light that will be in the future] because through the Akeida the Neshama of Yitzchak left him and returned which was an elevation similar to תחיית המתים and therefore the Geula will be in the merit of Yitzchak. Therefore it says that Avraham came to eulogize Sarah from Har Hamoriah where the Akeida had taken place. That is where the episode of תחיית המתים had taken place with Yitzchak. Avraham came to eulogize Sarah and recited the chapter of אשת חיל. This alludes to the idea of אשת חיל עטרת בעלה [a woman of valor is the crown of her husband - Mishlei 12-4] which is the level that will be revealed in the future where a woman is elevated to being the crown [above!!] her husband. Since in Sarah was revealed this aspect of תורה שבעל פה that will take effect after תחיית המתים and Avraham came from Har Hamoriyah the place of this revelation, his eulogy was אשת חיל. And since this revelation has to come through death and burial [post cheyt eitz hadaas], Avraham busied himself with buying a plot of burial for Sarah in Meoras Hamechpeila b/c that is where this revelation takes through the pipe that connects it to the Mizbeach at Har Hamoriyah. Since this transaction took place with בני חת, it emerges that if one is מברר this מקח, clarifies and understands the give and take, then תורה שבעל פה is revealed to him [b/c that is the futuristic אין סוף Torah] and thus it is as if he fulfilled the 10 דברות which are the revelation of תורה שבעל פה in the future.
To be continued - I hope!!
